Description of the Prior Art
This invention, relates to an assembly comprised of an article rack and cart adapted to engage and disengage each other, whereby the cart may be used, when engaged with the article rack, to transport the rack loaded with articles such as logs, from one position to another.
Articles such as logs are heavy and cumbersome to carry from a storage bin to their place of use, e.g. a fireplace. The prior art such as illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 3,021,011 has employed portable racks including a plurality of wheels, enabling a user to transport a bundle of articles, e.g. logs, to a fireplace by merely pushing the rack with a minimum of physical effort. In a similar design, the assignee of this invention has produced a rack and log cart known as the "The Hearthside Hauler" employing a rack for carrying logs, the rack being permanently coupled to a set of wheels. In addition, "The Hearthside Hauler" provides means for detachably connecting a handle to the article rack, whereby the handle may be grasped by a person in an upright position to move the rack from one position to another. A disadvantage of this rack and cart assembly is that the wheels are permanently attached to the rack, thereby detracting from the asthetic appearance of the rack when detached from the handle.
To improve the appearance of an article rack and cart assembly, the N.A. Taylor Manufacturing Company has suggested the use of an assembly comprising a cart having an upright handle and a set of wheels for engaging and lifting a rack for carrying articles. The cart includes an upper hook for engaging a horizontally disposed member of the article rack and a set of forks for engaging a lower portion of the rack. It is apparent that the user must accurately engage the forks to the lower portion of the rack in order that the rack and its contents of articles may be lifted and moved. In a similar manner, Flanders Industries has provided a rack and cart assembly comprising a cart with an upright handle having at its lower extremity a pair of wheels and a set of arms for engaging the article rack. The article rack includes a pair of hollow leg members, for receiving therein corresponding of the rack's arms, whereby the cart and rack are assembled together for transport. In order to stabalize the rack while it is being carried, it is necessary to provide a brace extending horizontally of the floor surface and a clip attached to the brace for further connecting the cart and the rack, so that the rack and the articles, e.g. logs, do not tip forward as they are lifted. Thus the connection of the cart and rack requires two steps. First, the insertion of the arms into the hollow legs and and the further step of securing the clip to the rack; upon reaching the distination, a similar but reverse process of decoupling the rack and cart takes place. Continued use of such a rack and cart assembly produces a strain upon the cart and the rack tending to deform the hollow leg members and their interconnection to the remainder of the rack, as well as the cart's arms. A further difficulty with such a rack and cart assembly is the relative instability of the rack and its contents, e.g. heavy wooden logs, while in transport.